Opening of Moscow Central Ring

10Сентября 2016

10Сентября 2016

Modernisation and electrification of the 54 km former freight line encircling Moscow city centre started in 2011. Several freight yards were dismantled and some connections to radial lines were removed. Freight services on the Central Ring are now restricted to night-time hours.

Passenger services are operated by RZD and run from 05.50 and 00.30. Minimum headways are 6 min from 07.30 to 11.30 and 17.00 to 20.30 on weekdays, and from 12.00 to 17.00 on Sundays. Off-peak headways are 12 min. One circuit of the ring takes 84 min. Initially, 26 of the 31 stations have been opened, with the remaining five due to follow later this year.

Travel on the Central Ring is free for the first month, after which the line will be integrated in the metro’s fare structure. Ridership is forecast at 25 million passengers this year, rising to 250 million in 2020.

Most of the line runs above ground, with only a short section around Ploshchad Gagarina in tunnel. Many of the stations offer interchange with existing or future metro lines, although the ring line’s stations are physically separate. Walking distances between metro and ring line stations range from 2 to 12 min.

CJSC ELSY was chosen as a sole manufacturer and supplier of fare gates to all stations of Central Ring. That signifies a highest level of trust in company's hardware and its undisputed reliability as a long term technological partner of Moscow metro and Russian Railways. Moscow Central Ring was equipped with three types of fare gates UT-2005, UT-2000.9 and UT-2012 depending on the size of passenger halls and specific needs.